Power unit



March y 23, 1937. J. w. MccLATcHlE POWER; UNIT Filed Aug. 19, 1933 2 Sheets-Sheet 1` I* IIIHIl 's3 .J'OHN MAC CLATCHIE ATTORNEY.

March 23, 1937. J. w MacLATH|E POWER, UNIT Filed Aug. 19, 1933 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

Patented Mar. 23, 1937 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 3 Claims.

This invention is a power unit for operating the drive shaft of a .rotary well pump such as used in water wells; and has for its object to rotate the pump shaft by an internal combustion engine, so positioned with relation to the pump shaft as to provide compact assembly and a simple driving connection.

It is a further object of the invention to rotate with vertical -disposition of the engine shaft permitting use of gearing which is of simple conm struction and which may be housed in a casing supported above that end of the pump shaft which projects above the surface of the ground, with the gear casing in turn supporting the radialcylinder internal combustion engine which drives the pump shaft.

It is a still further object of the invention to water cool the internal combustion engine, and to employ the liquid which is pumped from the well as a heat extracting medium for the water which is used in the cooling system, and if desired to similarly employ the well liquid for reducing the temperature of the lubricating oil which is used in the engine.

Further objects of the invention will be readily understood from the following description of the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of the power unit, partly in axial section and with the intake .and exhaust manifolds of the engine broken away.

ig. 2 is a top plan View of the power unit with one cylinder of the engine removed. i

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the engine showing its intake and exhaust manifolds but with the lower part of the unit broken away.-

45 l The invention is applicable to pumping wells such as water wells, wherein a pump at the lower end of well casing I is operated by a drive shaft 2 which rotates in the well casing. The well casing discharges via a lateral outlet 3 in a casing 50 head 4, and the vertical pump shaft 2 projects above the casing head through a stumng box 5 and is provided with a usual thrust bearing 5a.

A radial-cylinder internal combustion engine is' mounted above pump shaft 2 with its drive ,55 shaft on a vertical axis, and a driving connection (Cl. 10S-87) is provided between the pump shaft 2 and the vertical drive shaft of the engine. As an instance of this arrangement the casing head 4 may be enclosed in a housing 5 resting on a suitable foundation 'I at the ground level, and an annular 5 gear casing 8 may be mounted on housing 6, with the crank case 9 of the radial-cylinder engine supported on the gear casing.

The crank case of the engine is cylindrical and has a vertical axis, and its lower end is enlarged 10 for reception of a flywheel as shown at 9a., and its upper end includes a radially offset casing 9bv for the cam mechanism for the valves of the engine. The periphery of the crank case has a plurality of openings I0 for radial cylinders II, 15 and a crank shaft I2 is journaled in the crank case, with the piston rods for the respective cylinders connected to a common crank-throw I3. The upper portions of the cylinders form valve casngs Ila for usual intake and exhaust valves, 20 and the valves are operated by cam mechanism I4 which is shown as journaled on shaft I2, and which may be driven by shaft I2 through a train of gears I5, I6, I1, I8 which is housed in casing 9b. Flywheel I9 is fixed on the lower end of shaft 25 I2 and is housed in casing 9a.

Intake and exhaust pipes 20 and 2| communicate with the intake and exhaust valves of the respective cylinders; and the intake pipes 20 project upwardly from the respective cylinders 30 and then extend toward the vertical axis of the engine where they are connected to a manifold 22 which is supplied with fuel from a carbureter 23, and the exhaust pipes 2l project upwardly from the respective cylinders and then extend toward the vertical axis of the engine in spaced relation above the carbureter 23 and are connected to an exhaust manifold 24. It will thus be seen that free access may be had to the engine from all sides without obstruction by the intake 40 and exhaust pipes, and that the carbureter is protected by being within the spider-like structure which is formed by the exhaust pipes 2I, and that the exhaust manifold 24 discharges into the atmosphere at a relatively high level so that the exhaust gases clear the operator when he is working around the engine.

The engine is water-cooled, water being supplied to an annular duct 25 in crank case 5 via a supply pipe 26 connected to a Water inlet 21, and 50 the water flows from the annular duct through connections 28 to the lower sides of water jackets 29 of the respective cylinders, it being noted that the duct 25 is horizontally disposed and that the connections 28 for the respective cylinders are all 55 in the same horizontal plane so that water supplied to duct 25 will be equally distributed to the Water jackets of the respective cylinders. The heads 30 of the cylinders have water jackets 3| communicating with water jackets 29 and provided with outlets 32 at the upper sides of the cylinder heads and .above the valve casings Ila, with these outlets laterally offset from the vertical axial planes of the cylinders as shown at Fig. 3, so that they communicate with the water jackets adjacent the exhaust pipes 2| which are connected to the exhaust valves of the cylinders. As a result of this positioning of the outlets 32 above the exhaust valves of the cylinders, circulation around the water jackets 29 is directed around all sides of the exhaust valves as the water flows toward outlets 32, thereby insuring maximum cooling at the exhaust valves where there is the greatest liability of overheating. The outlets 32 for the cylinders are connected by pipes 33 leading from the respective outlets 32 to a manifold 34 having an outlet 35. Cooling water is circulated by a pump 36 which may be driven by crank shaft I2; and for this purpose a drive shaft 31 may project radially from crank case 9, with bevel gears 39-40 forming a driving connection between the crank shaft I2 and the inner end of shaft 31. The outer end of shaft 31, which is connected to pump 36, is preferably also adapted to drive a generator and distributor for the ignition system of the engine, and to drive a pump which forces lubricating oil to the bearings of the engine.

As an instance of this arrangement a gear casing 4| which projects radially from crank case 9 may enclose the outer end of shaft 31; and a shaft 42 extends radially beyond the gear casing, and shafts 43-44 project from the respective sides of the gear casing. The shaft 31 drives the shaft 42 through a coupling 45, and drives the shafts 43-44 through a bevel gear 46 which is xed on shaft 31, and which meshes with bevel gears 41-48 on shafts 43-44 respectively. The shaft 42 is the drive shaft for water pump 36 which may be supported by a bearing housing 49 fixed to the radial outer face of casing 4|, the inlet to the pump being shown at 50 and its outlet 5| being connected to the supply pipe 26 which leads to the water inlet 21.

The shaft 43 is the drive shaft for an oil pump 52 which is fixed to one of the side faces of casing 4 I, oil being supplied to the pump at an inlet 53 and being forced to the various bearings of the engine as shown at 54, and discharging from the pump at an outlet 55. The shaft 44 drives a generator 56 which is fixed to the other side face of casing 4|, and which at its outer end supports a distributor 51 which is operated by a driving connection housed in a casing 58.

The gear casing 8 and the flywheel casing 9a house a driving connection between flywheel I9 and pump shaft 2; and this driving connection preferably comprises gearing whereby the internal combustion engine may drive the pump shaft at a desired speed. For this purpose a vertical shaft 60 is journaled in casing 8 in longitudinal alinement with shaft 2, and is connected to shaft 2 by a flexible coupling 6|; and the crank case 9 is mounted on gear casing 8 so that the crank shaft I2 is laterally offset relative to shaft 60 in order that an external gear 62 which is xed on shaft 6I) may be adapted for direct meshing engagement with a larger internal gear 63 on the ywheel I9. The gear casing 8 is xed to the crank case 9 so that the shaft 60 which is journaled in casing 8 is accurately alined with respect to the crank shaft I2 to cause the gears 62-63 to run true; but with these parts thus accurately alined, it is immaterial whether the engine unit which includes the accurately alined parts 8 9 supporting the shafts |2-60, is then accurately alined with the support 6, since the exible coupling 6| provides a driving connection between shafts BIJ-2, irrespective of any slight inaccuracies in alinement between the parts 6-8.

The radial cylinder internal combustion engine is thus adapted for convenient mounting over the pump shaft 2 with its drive shaft I2 on a vertical axis parallel with the pump shaft; and the shafts |2-2 are operatively connected by a driving connection which may include speedchange gearing, with the driving connection of simple construction and the power unit adapted for convenient assembly and eicient operation for pumping a well and discharging liquid through a pipe line 65 which is connected to outlet 3.

The liquid which is discharged from outlet 3 will be of relatively low temperature since it will have just been drawn from the depths of the earth, and with the power unit mounted directly over the casing head 4, it is so positioned that the cool liquid which is discharged through outlet 3 may be utilized for dissipating heat generated by operation of the internal combustion engine. As an instance of this heat dissipating means a casing 66 may be provided in pipe line 65 adjacent the outlet 3, so that the liquid flowing through casing 66 will be at the relatively low temperature at which the liquid is initially withdrawn from the Well, and heat transfer coils 61-68 are submerged in the cool flowing liquid in casing 66. Supply tanks 69-10 for water and oil respectively are mounted on casing 66, and the lower portion of water tank 69 is connected to the upper end of coil 61 as shown at 1|, and the lower end of coil 68 is connected to the upper part of oil tank 10 as shown at 12. A pipe 13 leads from the lower end of coil 61 to the inlet 5050i water pump 36, and the outlet 35 for the water which has been circulated through the water jackets of the engine is connected by a. pipe 14 to the upper part of water tank 69. The lower part of oil tank 10 is connected by a. pipe 15 to the inlet 53 of the oil pump 52, and the outlet 55 of the oil pump is connected by a pipe 18 to the upper end of coil 68.

The warm.I water returned from the engine to the water tank 69 is thus cooled bypassing through coil 61 before being again circulated through the water jackets of the engine, and the lubricating oil may be similarly reduced inA temperature by passing through coil 68 as it is returned from pump 52 to the oil tank 10, the reduction in temperature being rapidly and efficiently obtained by utilizing the low temperature of the liquid when it is first pumped from the well.

The power unit is thus particularly adapted for operating rotary well pumps, being readily operatively assembled over the pump shaft so as to drive the pump shaft at a desired speed by an extremely simple driving connection, and being thus adjacent the discharge from the Well casing so that the low temperature of the well liquid may be efciently employed for dissipating engine heat.

I claim:

1. In combination, a well casing, a vertical drive shaft for a rotary well pump projecting above the well casing, a support overlying the projecting end of the pump shaft, an internal combustion engine including an engine case mounted on the support with the crank shaft of the engine on a vertical axis and laterally offset relative to the pump shaft, a flexible coupling in the projecting end of the pump shaft, the upper end of the pump shaft which extends above the flexible coupling being journaled in the engine case, the crank shaft of the engine depending alongside said upper end of the pump shaft whereby said shafts are parallel, a driving connection between the parallel shafts comprising a gear on the crank shaft meshing with a gear on the pump shaft, a coil submerged in the flow from the well casing, a water jacket for the internal combustion engine, a circulating system including the water jacket and the coil, a pump for the circulating system mounted on the internal combustion engine, and a driving connection between the crank shaft of the engine and the last-mentioned pump.

2. In combination, a Well casing, a vertical drive shaft for a rotary well pump projecting above the well casing, a support overlying the projecting end of the pump shaft, an internal combustion engine including an engine case mounted on the support, a shaft rotatably sup-ported in the engine case on a vertical axis, a driving connection in the engine case between the engine and said shaft, a flexible coupling between said shaft and the pump shaft x0 providing a driving connection between said shafts irrespective of exact axial alinement of said shafts when the engine case is mounted on the support,

means separate from the well casing for cooling a fluid by flow from said well casing, a jacket on the internal combustion engine for said fluid, a circulating system including the jacket and the cooling means, a pump for the circulating system, and a driving connection between the crank shaft of the engine and the last-mentioned pump.

3. In combination, a well casing, a vertical drive shaft for a rotary well pump projecting above the Well casing, a support overlying the projecting end of the pump shaft, an internal combustion engine including an engine case mounted on the support with the crank shaft of the engine on a vertical axis and laterally offset relative to the pump shaft, a flexible coupling in the projecting end of the pump shaft, the upper end of the pump shaft Which,extends above the flexible coupling being j ournaled in the engine case, the crank shaft of the engine depending alongside said upper end of the pump shaft whereby said shafts are parallel, a driving connection between the parallel shafts comprising a gear on the crank shaft meshing with a gear on the pump shaft, a coil separate from the well casing but cooled by ow from said well casing, a water jacket for the internal combustion engine, a circulating system including the water jacket and the coil, a pump for the circulating system, and a driving connection between the crank shaft of the engine and the last-mentioned pump.

JOHN W. MACCLATCHIE. 

